A Last-Minute Deal on Detainees
After weeks of fighting, Congress passed a bill last week governing the treatment and prosecution of terrorism suspects, marking a victory for President Bush and the GOP-at least momentarily-in the run-up to the midterm elections.
Following House approval of the bill on Wednesday, the Senate voted 65 to 34 to approve the measure on Thursday, with 12 Democrats crossing party lines to vote for the legislation. But even though the president is expected to sign the bill shortly, some lawmakers warned that the Supreme Court might still overturn part of the law, just as the high court overturned the president's original concept for military tribunals back in June.
The bill would prohibit several kinds of abuses of detainees, as defined under the Geneva Conventions, but leave it to the president to say exactly what interrogation techniques are allowable. The bill also sets up military tribunals that allow some use of evidence obtained through coercion but gives defendants partial access to classified evidence being used against them. In addition, the measure expands the definition of "enemy combatants" to include noncitizens living legally in the United States and those who provide weapons, money, or support to terrorist groups.
Differing views. "This bill will help keep Americans safe by creating military commissions to prosecute terrorists for war crimes and by preserving an intelligence program that has disrupted terrorist plots," said Sen. Majority Leader Bill Frist, reflecting the view of many on Capitol Hill.
But others wondered whether the measure could survive judicial review. They said the Supreme Court might object to provisions that eliminate a detainee's ability to challenge detention. "This bill," said Sen. Patrick Leahy, the ranking Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, "is not a check on the administration but a voucher for future wrongdoing."
This story appears in the October 9, 2006 print edition of U.S. News & World Report.